Like most people, when I first saw a kettlebell, I was simultaneously confused and amused. My first exposure to kettlebells happened at a martial arts seminar in San Diego when one of the instructors lugged out a 53 pound iron-wrecking-ball with a handle fused to the top of it. He called the object a "kettlebell" – it looks like a tea kettle and it swings like a church bell. He began a demonstration and spoke on the benefits and martial arts applications of kettlebell exercise. I had little interest in new trends and was much less inclined to try it out myself – that is, until I saw one of the seminar leaders struggle with the most basic and foundational exercise, the ballistic kettlebell swing.